Knowledge Translation

Dignitas believes that local and international partnerships have the potential to ignite solutions for common health challenges faced by rural and remote communities in different regions of the world.

Our approach is informed by a dynamic and iterative knowledge translation cycle: a process through which researchers, health workers and policymakers collaborate to develop questions, implement studies and make effective use of research findings. The cycle includes synthesis, dissemination, exchange and ethical application of knowledge to improve patient health, provide more effective health services and strengthen the health system.

In addition to producing clinical and health systems-level evidence, much of our research includes cost-effectiveness and social science components, which are vital to understanding the human impact of health interventions, and providing policymakers with the evidence they need to make informed decisions around the allocation of scarce resources.

KTPMalawi: Bridging the Knowledge Gap

Due to time constraints and competing priorities, researchers and policymakers often fail to effectively communicate and share knowledge with each other. The chasm created between these key stakeholders means that lifesaving health care solutions aren’t implemented as quickly as they should be.

Since 2012, Dignitas International has been working to bridge this gap with Malawi’s first Knowledge Translation Platform (KTPMalawi). KTPMalawi aims to translate lifesaving research into quality health policy and practical improvements in health care. This platform brings together a variety of professionals – health care providers, researchers and policymakers – from across the country and internationally. With ongoing training and routine dialogue, it is expected that research evidence will translate into sound health care decisions.

Together, KTPMalawi stakeholders have selected two key focus areas with great potential to improve patient outcomes and the calibre of health care in Malawi: non-communicable diseases and supply chain management. Participants are now developing concrete policy recommendations that will build a stronger health system and ultimately improve patient health.

In keeping with Dignitas’s commitment to sustainability, Dignitas has partnered with the Malawi government in forming the KTP. In the future, the KTP will be managed by the Ministry of Health and will be able to operate without external support. To learn more, visit KTPMalawi.org

With a network of global health experts and programs in both Southern Malawi and Northern Ontario, we have launched a first of its kind MultiDirectional Knowledge Translation Platform to address chronic diseases for people living in low- and middle-income countries and Indigenous populations.

We will demonstrate the early effectiveness of a new global partnership model that transforms the way knowledge is generated and exchanged between different regions of the world. The platform is an alternative to the traditional one-way knowledge transfer from the global north to the global south. We will adopt an approach of multidirectional knowledge exchange to continuously generate new learned for improved health policy and practice in the 21st century. Best practices and lessons learned will be shared and applied between health partners working in different contexts. This way, we can maximize investments in global health and improve as many lives as possible.